최근 신규고객의 획득보다는 기존고객의 유지 및 관계강화가 기업수익성을 창출하는데 주요원천이 됨에 따라 고객관계관리(CRM)의 중요성이 부각되었다. 이에 따라 고객관계에 기반을 두어 형성된 고객자산(customer equity)에 관한 연구가 활발하게 이루어지고 있다. 고객자산의 구성요소는 가치자산(value equity), 브랜드자산(brand equity), 관계자산(relationship equity)로 구성되며, 이를 측정하기 위해 고객생애가치(Customer Lifetime Value: CLV)를 사용하였다. 하지만 고객자산을 측정하기 위해 사용된 고객생애가치는 기업의 재무적 성과를 측정하는데 유용한 개념이지만, 기업들이 이를 정확히 측정하는데 어려움이 있다. 고객생애가치에 기반한 고객자산 측정은 고객의 누적 구매량과 구매액에 초점을 맞추고 있기 때문에 고객자산을 정의하는데 핵심요소인 장기적 고객관계 구축이라는 개념을 반영하지 못하는 한계점을 갖는다. 이에 따라 본 연구는 고객과의 장기적 관계형성이라는 고객자산의 핵심개념을 반영하기 위해 고객생애가치 대신 고객충성도를 사용해 고객자산을 측정했다. 본 연구는 Rust, Zeithaml, and Lemom(2000)이 제안한 고객자산모델을 확장시킨 Vogel, Evanschitzky, and Ramaseshan(2008)의 연구를 바탕으로 고객자산의 구성요소들이 고객충성도에 미치는 효과를 살펴보았다. 또한 상황에 따라 고객자산 구성요소의 상대적 중요도가 달라질 수 있으므로, 고객자산의 구성요소와 충성도간의 관계에서 제품유형이 갖는 조절효과를 살펴보았다. 실증분석 결과 고객자산의 구성요소인 가치자산, 브랜드자산, 관계자산은 고객충성도에 긍정적인 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났으며, 가치자산과 관계자산에 비해 브랜드자산이 고객의 기업/브랜드 충성도에 상대적으로 더 많은 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다. 고객자산의 구성요소들과 고객충성도간의 관계에서 제품유형이 갖는 조절효과를 살펴본 결과, 고관여/이성제품의 경우 가치자산과 브랜드 자산이 고객충성도에 유의하게 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났으며, 고관여/감성제품의 경우에는 가치자산, 브랜드자산, 관계자산 모두 고객충성도에 긍정적인 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다. 저관여 이성/감성제품의 경우 가치자산, 브랜드자산, 관계자산 모두 고객충성도에 유의하게 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다. 연구결과를 요약하면, 고객들은 가치자산, 브랜드자산, 관계자산 모두를 고려해 기업 또는 제품에 대해 평가하고, 이를 기반으로 충성적 행동을 결정하는 것으로 나타났다. 또한 제품유형에 따라 고객자산의 구성요소의 상대적 영향력이 다르게 나타났는데, 이는 제한된 마케팅자원을 가진 기업들이 제품유형에 따라 고객자산 구성요소에 대한 마케팅투자의 비중을 차별화시켜야 함을 시사한다.

As maintaining and growing existing customers become more profitable source than the acquisition of new customers, many firms recognize the strategic importance of CRM(Customer Relationship Management). The key of successful CRM is to measure, build, and strengthen the customer equity. The concept of customer equity is important in combining customer relationship/ retention management with brand management. In the saturated product market, customer equity as a measure of the future purchase behavior of a firm's customers is a strategic intangible asset to be monitored and strengthened to maximize long-term marketing performance. With the growing recognition that customer equity is a key strategic asset, researches on linking marketing actions to the return on investment for marketing mix programs and customer equity have been gaining significance and several conceptual/quantitative models have been proposed. Our study consists of the qualitative and quantitative approach. The purpose of qualitative research is to examine whether three customer equity drivers( value equity, brand equity, and relationship equity) are useful and valid constructs in predicting the loyal customer behavior and how they have differential impact on the customer behavior according to product types. For this purpose we use ethnographic interview. Four informants are interviewed to implement the domain analysis, taxonomy analysis, componential analysis and draw the theme and meanings. We find that value equity, brand equity, and relationship equity are useful constructs in explaining the customer loyalty and have differential impact on the customer behavior according to different product types. Quantitative approach empirically investigates the effect of customer equity drivers on customer loyalty based on the study of Vogel, Evanschitzky, and Ramaseshan(2008) which had expanded the Rust, Zeithaml, and Lemon's study(2000) on customers equity. Specifically we empirically examine whether the value equity, brand equity, and relationship equity that are customer equity drivers have differential impact on customer loyalty And this study hypothesizes that the relative impact of customer equity drivers would be different depending on product types and examines the moderating effect of product types in the causal relationship between the drivers of customer equity and customer loyalty as well. The products are categorized as four types that are high involvement-think product(notebook), low involvement-think product(apparels), high involvement-feel product(coffee store), low involvement-feel product(shampoo). we use stepwise multiple regression analysis to empirically test the causal relationship between value equity, brand equity, and relationship equity and customer loyalty. The empirical results support that value equity, brand equity, and relationship equity all have a positive impact on customer loyalty. Especially brand equity affects more strongly on company/brand loyalties than the other two drivers( value equity, and relationship equity) do. We examine the moderating effect of product type in the relationship between customer equity drivers and loyalty, In the case of high involvement-think product, only brand equity and value equity affect customer loyalty significantly. For high involvement-feel product, all of value equity, brand equity, and relationship equity affect customer loyalty positively and brand equity is especially crucial in building customer equity. In the case of low involvement think/feel product, all of value equity, brand equity, and relationship equity affect customer loyalty significantly. The customers seem to build loyalty based on the careful assessment of all drivers of customer equity such as value equity, brand equity, and relationship equity. In addition, their relative impact is different depending on the product types. Since a company can not maintain all customer equity drivers at high level with its limited marketing resourses and to do so is also ineffective, marketing investment in drivers of customer equity needs to be differentially allocated depending on the product types.

Customer Equity, Customer Loyalty, Value Equity, Brand Equity, Relationship Equity